COLUMBUS INTERVIEWS

'It’s full of satire, especially of the musicals of the 1920s before they had figured out story structure, character development, or basically anything else Rodgers and Hammerstein figured out in OKLAHOMA.' Jeremy Blaustein...

Iris is somewhat of a entertainment marvel. For a performer who makes his living with his voice, the Pittsburgh native doesn’t use any sort of vocal gymnastics or care regimes to keep his vocal cords robust. A cigar aficionado, you can find Iris hosting monthly gatherings at bars in Pittsburgh....

Noted reviewer Leonard Maltin gave STOP MAKING SENSE four out of four stars and called it  one of the best concert films. The staging was ambitious: set pieces float in and out of the frame while screens project random images and words behind the band....

There’s at least one line that either Jamie or Kathy says that everyone can relate to.' Hunter Minor. Minor and Sierra navigate the emotional terrain of Jason Robert Brown's two-person musical. ...

Sonny Paladino distinctly remembers when Judgement Day arrived for the show A BEAUTIFUL NOISE: THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL. After months of rehearsing, Paladino, the music supervisor, arranger, and orchestrator, and the cast of the Neil Diamond bio-musical faced their toughest critic in January 2020 wh...

According to British playwright James Phillips, inspiration can be found anywhere: a photograph, a fragment of a story, a sentence, or in the case of BOBBY AND THE CHIMPS, a winetasting. Phillips’ play makes its world premiere April 3-6 and 10-13 at the Abbey Theater of Dublin (5600 Post Road in D...

Robert Cooperman may not remember her first name, but he is forever grateful to Mrs. Barlas, the Jamaica (N.Y.) High School English teacher who introduced  him to playwright Eugene O’Neill....

The road to success for Hannah Shankman has had plenty of roundabouts. Many a time she thought she was headed one way, and then she seemed to be veering in another, only to return to her original path....

Laura Overby had one of those “pinch me, I must be dreaming” moments when she found out she was going to be performing with Laura Bell Bundy at the Short North Stage’s gala 8 p.m. March 1 at the Garden Theatre (1187 N. High Street in downtown Columbus)....

“I truly believe there’s a reason why we tell ourselves the same stories over and over again. It’s because we haven’t learned the lesson of the story. It's a story of inclusion, of belonging, of acceptance. Allegra Libonati...

“Her influence is like the threads in the tapestries of many different artists today. The idea of a woman taking things into her own hands, using her voice unabashedly, and being funny and sexy at the same time really resonates with me.” --Francesca DiFrancesco...

In her second go around in the musical NINE, Sarah Chelli has gone from being the one cheated on to the one being cheated with. Read our interview here!...

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, Andrew Levitt (aka Nina West) will return home and back on stage in Columbus, Ohio, starring as The Witch in INTO THE WOODS, March 7-9, 2025, at Columbus’ historic Palace Theatre, 34 W. Broad St.  This Broadway-inspired production will benefit the Hospice a...

This is the first time I’m able to perform music that is fully mine. I've written all the music and came up with the concept for it, and I'm really excited to share that with the Columbus community....

​​​​​​​When Mike Backes found out he was cast as Tommy DeVito in Short North Stage’s upcoming production of JERSEY BOYS, one of the first people he called was someone he had never met before: Adam Marino who will be playing Frankie Valli in the show....

When Alyssa Ryan, the executive director of the Original Productions Theatre, saw she had a vacancy in her theater’s calendar for October, she immediately knew who to call -- playwright Cory Skurdal....

The very things which got comedian Greg Proops bullied in elementary school has become a skill people pay to see him use....

“It’s difficult to play Diana but it’s incredibly healing for me personally. You never play a character who’s exactly like you. However, when you find a role you connect with, it can be a beautiful way to explore a part of yourself.' Rachel Hertenstein...

“I don't really feel like The General until I put the full costume on. Once you put it on, it brings this energy that speaks for itself.”...

When she was forced to study DEATH OF A SALESMAN, the Arthur Miller play didn’t make much of an impression on Megan Lear...

There’s no phone booth, no Bat Cave for Craig Winberry. Winberry, who plays the title character in the latter stages of his career in the show, THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF GEORGE MICHAEL, says one doesn’t just don razor stubble and tinted sunglasses to become one of the biggest pop stars in the world....

Growing up, Katy Psenicka admits she didn’t listen to the radio the way her peers did. While her friends were jamming to country and western, pop music, or rock classics, the chief choreographer for Shadowbox Live! heard the notes but saw movement....

Short North Stage hopes to capture the fun as well as an unflinching look of the era as singers Christian McQueen (Ken), Israeljah Reign (Nell), Catara Brae (Charlaine), Isaac Tobbler (Andre), and Sydney Arterbridge (Armelia) lead the audience through a 30-song journey from the dive bars of Lennox A...

As Shadowbox Live begins its summer-ending run with the sketch comedy show WILD THINGS, Buzz Crisafulli feels like a newcomer again....

In her book, BURNT OFFERING, author Laurell K. Hamilton writes, “Never trust people who smile constantly. They're either selling something or not very bright.”...